The Year In Medicine From A to Z

(9 of 11)

Staying physically active is a good idea, especially for kids, but too much exercise can be harmful to young joints and tender muscles, particularly at the team-sports level. In the first Internet survey of injuries, sponsored by the CDC, researchers recorded 2.4 injuries for every 1,000 practices or competitions. That's why Little League Baseball, for one, instituted new pitching rules for the 2007 season. Kids 10 years or younger have to stop after 75 pitches, and anytime a Little Leaguer throws more than 21 times, he has to give his arm at least one day to recover.

SPINACH

Arnold Schwarzenegger may soon have a new role on TV and print ads: pitchman for Popeye's favorite power food. It's part of an effort to bolster the sagging spinach industry, which got bruised this fall when bags of the leafy green were found contaminated with E. coli 0157 bacteria. Nearly 200 people became ill-- and three died--after eating the tainted spinach, which was traced to California-based Natural Selection Foods. The company is now testing its produce for bacteria, and kids will just have to start eating their greens again.

STATINS

Statins have earned a reputation lately as a wonder drug. Not only do they protect against heart disease by controlling the amount of cholesterol the liver churns out, but they can also dampen the inflammatory flare-ups that contribute to everything from arthritis to heart attacks. Early studies even hint that statins may also work on the plaques and tangles that cause Alzheimer's disease. But all drugs have their limits. An analysis of 12 trials found that patients who had taken statins within two weeks of having a heart attack or angina did not reduce their risk of dying or having another heart attack or stroke in the following four months.

STEM CELLS

Using his first veto since he entered office, President George W. Bush rejected a bill that would have partially lifted his 2001 ban on the use of federal funds for human embryonic-stem-cell research. The measure would have allowed government-funded scientists to use embryos left over from IVF procedures to generate stem cells, a potential source of new treatments for everything from diabetes to Parkinson's. At a press conference this summer, Bush surrounded himself with "snowflake babies," born after couples adopted frozen embryos, and argued that such research was morally questionable. Still, U.S. scientists are pushing ahead, thanks to private funding. Those at Harvard's Stem Cell Institute began recruiting egg donors for studies that could generate customized stem cells from individual patients, while Advanced Cell Technology reported some success in creating stem cells without destroying embryos.

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